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In mid-1941, Hammer, formerly in the U.S. Army Air Corps Reserve, was recruited among a small group of American pilots battling Japanese forces invading China. He was employed with the Central Aircraft Manufacturing Company (CAMCO), which was officially termed the "American Volunteer Group," (AVG) and popularly known as the "Flying Tigers." The AVG consisted of three fighter squadrons, each with approximately 30 Curtiss P-40 single-seat aircraft. In September 1941, Hammer was training with other AVG pilots at Kyedaw Airfield, a British Royal Air Force airfield outside of Toungoo, Burma. Though most of the recruits were experienced pilots, none had seen combat. To prepare them, the AVG instituted an aggressive training program, encouraging their pilots to carry out mock battles. Hammer was killed during a training flight on Sept. 22, 1941, when he encountered severe weather and his plane crashed. Hammer was reportedly buried in the Airmen's Cemetery at St. Luke's Anglican Church in Toungoo.

In late December 1947, an American Graves Registration Service team recovered the remains of three members of the AVG. The remains were declared unidentifiable and were temporarily interred in the U.S. Military Cemetery at Barrackpore, India in January, 1948. The remains were eventually moved to Hawaii in an attempt to identify them, designated as X-633, X-634 and X-635, but identification was unsuccessful. They were re interred at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, as World War II Unknowns.

PRIMARY STAGING DETAILS: 20 Mar 2017

Primary Staging Time: 2:00 P.M.

Walker Funeral Home
112 S Poplar St

Carbondale, Illinois

Ride Captains:

Larry Hamilton
618-534-2893

Gary "Taco" Cook

Special Instructions:

We will honor LT. Maxx Hammer with a flag line during the visitation

Flags & Water:

Flags Will Be Provided

Large Bike Flags will NOT be needed.

Water will be provided.

STAGING #2 DETAILS: 21 Mar, 2017

Staging #2 Time: 9:00 A.M.

Walker Funeral Home
112 S Poplar St

Carbondale, Illinois

Ride Captains:

Larry Hamilton
618-534-2893

Gary "Taco" Cook

Special Instructions:

We will provide a flag line for the funeral service. There will not be a escort.

Flags & Water:

Flags will be provided

Large bike flags will NOT be needed

Water will be provided.

Submitted By: Judi HamiltonPosition: Ride Captain

Note:

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SGM (R)
Massachusetts Army National Guard (1970-2012)
OIF I and OIF III Veteran
MA Ride Captain
National Moderator Team

Our condolences to the friends and family of our departed hero. We will keep you in our thoughts and prayers during this difficult time. Your loss is our loss and we share that burden. We now stand the flag line and ride in honor of the service to this great nation.

My wife and I wish to extend our sincere condolences to the family and friends of this true American Hero, US Army Air Corps Reserve, WWII KIA, Lt. Maxx C. Hammer, Jr. We thank you for your service to a grateful nation, may your family find peace in knowing you served proudly and comfort in the months to come. May you rest in peace for your mission is now complete. I salute you.http://www.beforeyougo.us

My sincere condolences and prayers to the family and friends of Maxx C Hammer Jr. May your faith give you strength. May your memories give you comfort. May GOD'S love give you peace. Thank you Maxx for your service. Your service and ultimate sacrifice will never be forgotten.

Karen (kerrybell) Trone
If you are going to worry then don't pray...
If you are going to pray then don't worry !!
For I know the plans I have for you....
Jeremiah 29:11

It is with great sadness that I learned of the loss of this hero. We mourn
with their family and friends. Though we mourn, we stand tall to honor them.
This hero's service and sacrifice will not be forgotten. We ask that this hero
rest in eternal peace.
Hero, you can stand down. We have the watch.

My sincere condolences to the family and friends of this American Hero, a grateful nation mourns your loss. Find peace, strength and comfort in the knowledge that your fallen hero gave unselfishly of themselves in order to keep us all free and safe. Your brave warrior will never be forgotten. Thank you for sharing your loved one with all of us, their sense of duty and honor will live on for generations to come. God Bless you our Hero for a job well done.Stand down and rest in peace.

As I sit in Heaven, and watch you every day,I try to let you know with signs, I never went away.I hear you when you're laughing, and watch you while you sleep,I even place my arms around you, to calm you as you weep.I see you wish the days away, begging to have me home,So I try to send you signs, so you know you are not alone.Don't feel guilty that you have life, that was denied to me,Heaven is truly beautiful, just you wait and see.So live your life, laugh again, enjoy yourself, be free,Then I know with every breath you take, you'll be taking one for me.

I would like to offer my sincere condolences and prayers to the family during this time of sorrow. May peaceful moments and cherished memories bring renewed strength for tomorrow. Do not let your heart be troubled. Your faith will keep you strong. We thank this this fallen hero who honorably served our Nation.

My Family and I send our condolences to the Family and friends of a True American Hero. You will be in our thoughts and Prayers over the coming days. Your Hero’s Service and Sacrifice to our Country can never be forgotten.
Harry “Bantam” Trawick
SW Ga RC

A veteran is someone who, at one point in his life, wrote a blank check made payable to: "The United States of America" for any amount, up to and including my life".

Those we love don't go away, they walk beside us every day, Unseen, unheard, but always near, Still loved, still missed and very dear.
Miz. Alice and I would like to offer our Most Sincere Condolences. Thank you, for your dedicated commitment and service to our great country and for keeping our freedom and way of life. I salute you Brother and may you rest in peace wrapped in the loving arms of Almighty God

My wife and I wish to extend our sincere condolences to the family and friends of Maxx C. Hammer, Jr. KIA, POW/MIA, USACR - WWII. Thank you for your service to our country and may God Bless you and your family in their time of need. Rest in peace your duty here on earth is done.

Lamar SpeedyO Owen
Vietnam 1967-1968
U.S. Army
Standing for those that stood for us.
Went to Nam as strangers and came home brothers.
Riding in memory of my brother James W. Owen USAAC, WWII.

Every Time a Vietnam vet dies -- My in country memories surface. I remember the brotherhood and comradery of those times. I remember our struggles and our losses but most of all that we lost that contact when we returned to THE WORLD. We who survived made our veterans status invisible for a very long time. We did not survive because of our luck or skill. It was not our fault that we survived. It was God's will. God had another mission for us to complete. Or perhaps it was a mission for our family or friends. Perhaps that mission is still unfinished. . Maax's mission was complete 75 years ago and now our's continues.

Tripp, my Tiger cousin ,,,, Kay and I offer our sincere condolences and prayers to the families ot those still missing and rejoice with you as Maax is finally at rest with his family. We are standing in spirit with you in North Augusta, SC.
.
Rest in Peace Maax Hammer

Rest In Piece Lt. Maxx C. Hammer

"For men are not cast off by the Lord forever. Though he brings grief, he will show compassion, so great is his unfailing love. For he does not willingly bring affliction or grief to the children of men." Lamentations 3:31-33
WWII KIA, Lt. Maxx C. Hammer, Jr (Hammering Hank) you can now Rest In Piece.
Jim (ICEMAN) Brewer
SC,PGR, Ride Captain

My wife and I offer our sincerest condolences to the family and friends of our departed Hero. We are grateful to this Veteran and this family, for all of the sacrifices that were made to protect us, and preserve our freedoms. May your faith and your fond memories be your guiding light in this time of sorrow.

I stand....
In memory of my PGR Brother - Mark Schroeder - March 28, 2016
In honor of my active duty son - Ben Hirsch - U.S. Navy
In appreciation of all who earned my freedom.

CARBONDALE — Three A-10 Warthog jets flew in formation thousands of feet above a small gathering of family, military personnel and supporters gathered to pay a final tribute to a 25-year-old fighter pilot and Southern Illinois native who died more than 75 years ago.

Three A-10 Warthogs from the 74th Fighter Squardron at Moody Air Force Base in Valdosta, Georgia, perform a flyover during the interment service for Maax Hammer Jr. at Oakland Cemetery on Tuesday morning in Carbondale.
Byron Hetzler, The Southern

The remains of 2nd Lt. Maax C. Hammer Jr. rested in a small gold box atop a table — centered between the headstones of his parents, mother Ruth Hammer, on the left, and father, Maax C.Hammer Sr., on the right — near the middle of Oakland Cemetery in Carbondale.

Hammer's distant cousin, Tripp Alyn, had determined years ago to bring Hammer to this final resting place.

A military honor guard from Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, holds a flag over the remains of Maax Hammer Jr. as taps is played during an interment service at Oakland Cemetery on Tuesday morning in Carbondale.
Byron Hetzler, The Southern

It was more than 75 years ago that Hammer's plane crashed on a familiarization flight in Myanmar — then Burma — in 1941. He was buried in four other places before he landed at his final, familial resting place. An only child of his parents, the 25-year-old was not married and had no children when he died.

The ceremony Tuesday morning was quiet and solemn, with just a few people who were meaningful to Hammer's trip home, just the way Alyn had wanted. Lining the small gathering were other members of the military, and members of the Patriot Guard, a group of former military men and women and allies who [img]

An honor guard from Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, carries the remains of 2nd Lt. Maax Hammer Jr. during an interment ceremony at Oakland Cemetery on Tuesday morning in Carbondale.
Byron Hetzler, The Southern

The cousin Alyn had never met had been a pilot with the U.S. Army Air Corps Reserves in the late 1930s, before he resigned in 1941 to join the volunteer Flying Tigers.

In July 1941, Hammer had been recruited by the American Volunteer Group (AVG) for the Flying Tigers, allowed to secretly resign (under a presidential order) from the U.S. Army Air Corps, Alyn said. The Flying Tigers were commissioned to help the British and the Chinese defend China and Myanmar, then known as Burma, against the Japanese.

Alyn said Hammer had only been in the country six and a half days when he went for his first plane flight, what was known as a familiarization flight.